


A New World to Start with You

by Still_Aliveand_Kicking



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Darcy is the fandom bicycle and I love it, F/M, Falling In Love, Help, I Don't Even Know, I'm Sorry, Love, M/M, Multi, Post-Captain America: The First Avenger, Sorry Not Sorry, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates, The Author Regrets Nothing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-15
Updated: 2015-11-15
Packaged: 2018-05-01 20:05:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,511
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5219054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Still_Aliveand_Kicking/pseuds/Still_Aliveand_Kicking
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The world was supposed to end in 2000. Surprisingly, it didn't. Instead, words appeared on everyone, and those words were the first thing your soulmate would say to you.<br/>Darcy didn't get a mark.</p><p>Then January 7, 2011 happened.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> There's more to come!

            In the year 2000, the world was supposed to end. The computers were going to shut down, planes would fall from the sky, and doomsday would be upon us. That’s not at all what happened, no. Instead, everyone got one or more tattoos, with the words of their soulmate. It was a big change, some couples realized they were never meant to be. From then on, every baby born had the marks of their future. Some were happy about this. It meant they would never be alone, they would know if a relationship would work. Others were terrified, and tried to get rid of their soulmark, but only ended up hurting themselves.

            While all of Darcy’s friends got their soulmarks and were happily fantasizing about their future spouse, Darcy had no mark. There were no words, no name, nothing marred her porcelain skin. Some were jealous that she wasn’t burdened, others saw her as an outcast. The worst was that she may never have someone to share her life with. It made her miserable every day for almost eleven years. Until January 7, 2011. When she woke up, and suddenly the words “Not again…” were scrawled on her left collarbone in navy blue bolded lettering. And suddenly, she was hopeful again.


	2. Chapter 2

January 7, 2011

            “Jane!” Darcy cried, bursting into her friend’s apartment. The scientist lay on her couch, a laptop in her hands and leftover crumbs in her hair. The mid-morning sun filtered through purple shades, illuminating the messy apartment. “Jane, wake up!” The assistant said, shaking her friend awake.

            “Huh?” Jane mumbled intelligently, brushing the sleep from her eyes and sitting up.

            “Look,” Darcy said, pulling the collar of her shirt down to reveal the blue words. Jane’s eyes grew wide and she smiled. The scientist stood up and hugged her friend.

            “I told you it would happen.”

            “I know…I know. I just can’t believe that they finally showed up. What does that mean?”

            “I have no idea. Anyway…back to science, right?”

            “Oh Jane…” Darcy mumbled into her friend’s hair. “Okay. Science! awaits us. Let’s go.”

            The two women got ready for the morning, changing and heading down to the (very large, very _expensive_ and breakable) lab, courtesy of Tony Stark. Darcy had been employed at Stark Industries for a little under a year, as an official science! wrangler (Actually just an assistant, but she was pretty much a babysitter). She often floated between Jane, Bruce, and Tony, reminding them to eat, bathe, and sleep regularly. And though she wasn’t using her PolySci major, she was getting paid and had a place to live. What’s more? She knew three superheroes!

            After helping Jane set up for that day’s activities, Darcy headed off to help Dr. Banner. As much as she loved her friend, astrophysics didn’t interest her much. Biology? Chemistry? That did, and Dr. Banner was eager to teach. The young woman headed up a floor to his private lab. A few interns scurried about, but avoiding the Doctor and generally being rude. Yes, he could be incredibly scary sometimes, but he was human…(most of the time).

            “Bruce! What’s up?” She called into the lab. Stacks of paper and various bacteria (inside and outside of petri dishes) were set about, but his lab was by far the cleanest of the three scientists she worked for. “Whatcha working on?”

            The man was sitting in front of several computers, tapping and scanning. She walked up behind him and studied the screens, seeing something about ice and preserving humans. She jumped back when he whirled around in his chair.

            “Darcy. They found him!” He exclaimed, jumping up and grabbing her shoulders. Bruce rarely got excited in order to control the ‘other guy’, but his eyes were alight and his breathing heavy. The confused look in her eyes must have been a give-away to her lack of knowledge.

            “Huh?” She asked.

            “The Captain. He’s been frozen in ice for seventy years…but he’s alive!” Darcy blinked in response. Captain? Captain… _America_?

            “You mean…the legend? The star-spangled man with a plan?” She questioned again, eyes widened.

            “Yes!” He exclaimed, grabbing more paper and jotting down notes. “It’s a miracle of science, he’s been in ice for so long…but he’s still alive and healthy as ever…still biologically twenty five…” he rambled, going into the science mode Darcy knew he would be in for a while.

            Darcy spent the rest of the day helping Banner analyze mold and run various tests relating back to Captain America. At the end of the day, right when Darcy was getting ready to leave, the Doctor spoke again.

            “Oh, and Darcy?” He called right before she opened the door.

            “Yes?”

            “I wasn’t supposed to tell you about Cap. Just…keep quiet until the public knows, okay?” She simply smiled and nodded, grabbing her purse and heading up to her apartment. It was 5:00 on a Friday, but she didn’t feel like going out. Instead, she stood in her bathroom, brunette curls free from her tight bun and her shirt off. She stared at the blue lettering on her collar. “Not again…” she couldn’t help but think it meant something bad. Nonetheless, it was a mark. She wouldn’t be alone. This time, she didn’t cry from grief, but from relief.

~~~

January 3, 2000

            _10-year-old Darcy stood, staring in the mirror, looking for any hint of ink. Any trace of words so she would be like her friends. But there was nothing. Her skin was just as it had been in 1999. Milky, smooth, and definitely no wording. She wasn’t worried at first, this soulmark thing was very new. No one knew what had happened, if they would fade, if they were true. So she didn’t cry. Not at first. Then her friends starting talking about theirs._

_Amanda had the words, “So that’s what that means,” written in green cursive on her arm. Charlie had small and neat yellow letters on his foot that read “I found you!” Darcy had nothing. She was different, she didn’t have a soulmark. She became an outcast, grew away from her family and eventually went to college. It was better, but she still went everyday seeing others meet their soulmate, knowing she would never get one._

~~~

The Captain

January 14, 2011

            Everything was gone. His home, his family. Bucky. _Bucky_. It has been a week since he was defrosted, and he was living in the Stark Tower, though he hadn’t met Howard’s son, Tony. He would eventually. Right now he was focusing on beating up this punching bag.

January 21, 2011

            The Captain stalked upstairs. Today was his first meeting with Tony, and he had a lot of questions. What’s a cellphone and a what’s laptop? How do you use one? How has the rate of death gone down? And for the love of God, why was there lilac writing on his ribs that read “Pass me the thing to put the flames out?” The 21st century was just so…new.

            “Ah! Capsicle!” Tony called from across the workshop. Steve sighed and walked over. He had heard a lot about Tony, and was nervous to meet the flamboyant man. “How are you? Tell me, is your room warm enough…not freezing, are you?” He jabbed, throwing an arm around the Captain.

            Steve shrugged him off. “I’m fine. I just have a few questions.” He said, a hard edge in his voice. It wasn’t his fault, he had just lost everything two weeks ago.

            “See, I don’t do questions. You can ask Peppe-OH DEAR LORD!” Tony raced across the workshop to where something was pouring out smoke and was lit with red flames. “Do something, Cap! A fire extinguisher or something!” He yelled, and a robot rushed by him, dousing the flames in white foam, soothing the smoke and ending the commotion. “Gee, aren’t you helpful?” Tony sassed, walking over to the Captain.

            “Look, I just need my questions answered-” but Tony silenced him.

            “I told you. I don’t have time for questions. I’ll send Pepper, my lovely lady, down to help you. Jarvis?”

            “ **Yes, sir?** ” A voice from the ceiling answered.

            “Please send Pepper down.”

            “ **Right away, sir**.”

            Steve had an incredibly confused look, to which Tony answered with a smirk. A few seconds later, a woman with strawberry blonde hair, a black dress, and red heels came clicking down a set of stairs. She smiled and walked to stand beside Tony.

            “Nice to meet you, Cap. I’m Ms. Potts, but you can call me Pepper.” She gave a warm smile and offered her hand

            He shook her small hand, and released. “Steve. Ms. Potts, Tony said I could ask you a few questions?”

            Pepper turned and shot a cold glance at Tony. “Of course. Walk with me,” she said, and began walking towards the elevators, her heels clicking and Steve trailing behind her. They reached the elevators and went up another floor.

            “What can I help you with?” She asked, stepping out of the elevator.

            “Mostly just things to help me…get used to the 21st century,” She raised an eyebrow. “What’s a cellphone? And the internet?” he asked.

            “Well, a cellphone is a hand-held telephone you can use on the go to send messages and receive calls. The internet is used on a computer…kind of like a library that has everything that you can access from anywhere.”

            “And…” Steve hesitated to tell her about the mysterious writing on his chest. “…there’s this weird purple writing on my rib. It says ‘Pass me the thing to put the flames out?’.”

            Pepper nodded. “That’s a soulmark. In 2000, when the world was supposed to end, we all got them. Supposedly it’s the first words your soulmate will ever say to you,” she paused to pull up her sleeve, exposing red and gold bold letters on her wrist. They read, ‘you must be new here!’. “Tony’s first words to me,” she chuckled, “Charming, right? Don’t worry. It’s nothing to be worried about. You’ll meet your soulmate someday. Is that all for now?”

            Steve smiled, “Yes. Thanks, Ms. Potts.”

            “Pepper!” She called to him as he rode the elevators down.

~~~

February 1, 2011

            February. That meant it was _Tony’s_ month. Each month had a corresponding scientist to go with it. February meant Tony, and Darcy was _not_ in the mood to deal with him. February meant constant fire, smoke, an un-cooperative scientist, and a kick-ass girlfriend to watch over her. This is why she made February Tony’s month, it was the shortest. She groaned and rolled out of bed, getting ready for the morning. A pair of jeans and a nice blouse (that was waterproof) were thrown on, and makeup was kept to a minimum. She knew she would be doing manual labor this month, because Tony always needed extra hands. She grabbed two cups of coffee, sneakers, and headed to floor 80.

            She walked into the room and saw Tony furiously tapping away at a hologram. He looked like he hadn’t taken a break from science! in at least 36 hours. If this was a stage two, he needed sleep and food before he hit stage three.

            “Jarvis? How long has Tony been without sleep?”

            “ **Approximately thirty-four and a half hours.** ” The AI responded. Darcy sighed in response.

            “Tony?” She asked.

            “Yeah…one moment…” he said, the tapping becoming louder. It was no use prying him away from his work until he was at a good stopping point. Darcy began to clean up, gathering papers and empty plates, putting the trash in the attached kitchen. He needed something to eat, so she started making pasta.

 ** _BOOM_** , echoed through the space.

            Darcy whirled around, and saw a blaze had started in the middle of the room, and she ran to it. “Tony, God, what did you _do_?” She cried, searching for something to quench the flames.

~~~

            Steve stepped into his lab, only to see a fire near the middle of the room, and a small brunette woman frantically running about. All he wanted was to see what the latest in tech was, and if he could get a cellphone. When she saw him, she pointed to something and shouted, “Pass me the thing to put the flames out?”

            He sighed and looked at the blaze before reaching behind him to grab the fire extinguisher, and mumbled, “Not again…” before handing her the red canister.

            She turned and aimed it at the flames, spraying white foam all over. “TONY!” She shouted, “WHAT THE HELL? Why didn’t Jarvis put out the flames? _What were you doing_?” She questioned, still in hysteria. The scientist seemed unfazed, an unimpressed look on his face. His assistant, however, had multiple hairs free from her ponytail, and her green eyes were wide with shock.

            “I was fixing Jarvis, he had a bug. I guess I disabled the sprinklers by accident,” he commented, turning back to the hologram.

            “Tony. This is what happens at stage two, things get set on fire.” When he didn’t respond, she walked up to him and forcefully turned him around. “Tony. Bed. _Now_.” She said, pointing to a staircase.

            Tony just rolled his eyes and put a small rectangle of metal down, walking towards the stairs. “Yes, _mom_ ,” he retorted as he climbed the stairs.

            The woman turned to Steve, and he finally got a good look at her. Her bight green eyes were tired, but enlightened, and he towered over her small frame, but she still had enough confidence to make her seem bigger than she was. The woman was…quite honestly…beautiful.

            “I swear, it’s like taking care of a child sometimes,” she sighed.

            And then Steve realized. She had said ‘Pass me the thing to put the flames out?” _Pass me the thing to put the flames out_. She was his soulmate.

~~~

            He looked familiar. And he had uttered the navy blue words scrawled across her collarbone. He was her soulmate. She tried to keep herself from looking too shocked, and instead grinned really wide.

            “Well. You said the words currently written across my neck…so I guess we’re soulmates? I’m Darcy,” she said, extending her hand. She hoped on the outside she seemed cool and collected, because on the inside she was screaming. _She met her soulmate. She had a soulmate. **She met her soulmate**_.

            The man was turning a bright shade of red, but he gingerly shook her hand. “Steve Rogers,” he replied.

            “Steve…Rogers? Why does that sound familiar?” And then she remembered. Steve Rogers was… _is_ …Captain America. It all clicked into place, she finally understood why she didn’t get a soulmark until he was defrosted.

            “Perhaps a history textbook?” He suggested, a small smile illuminating his features. And boy were his features _good_. He was a real-life god (like Thor), with bright blue eyes and a chiseled jaw.

            Darcy was sure she looked like a flabbergasted fish, but that didn’t stop her. “Would you like to get coffee or something, sometime?”

            “I’d love to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first soul-mate AU, so I hope you enjoy! Please comment if you liked. There will be more to come!


End file.
